TOKYO: General Motors is checking whether its cars contain falsely certified parts or components sourced from Japan’s Kobe Steel, Kyodo News reported on Thursday, the latest major automaker to be dragged into the cheating scandal.
“We are aware of the data falsification and examining its impact,” Kyodo cited the company as saying in response to queries. GM could not be immediately contacted for comment.
GM joins automakers including Toyota Motor Corp and as many as 200 other companies that have received parts sourced from Kobe Steel as the scandal reverberates through global supply chains.
On Wednesday fresh revelations showed data fabrication at the steelmaker was more widespread than it initially said, as the company joins a list of Japanese manufacturers that have admitted to similar misconduct in recent years.
Investors, worried about the financial impact and potential legal fallout, again dumped Kobe Steel stock, wiping about US$1.6 billion off its market value in two days.
Kobe Steel President Hiroya Kawasaki is due meet a senior official at the industry ministry on Thursday. — REUTERS